Orient Poet Finds His True North

Everybody’s got a story on the North Fork. 

Next time you’re passing through Orient, stop by the . You may find Billy Hands pumping gas, under a hood or working on his next book of poetry. 

Q: Billy, how did life bring you here to the North Fork? 

A: My great-grandparents actually spent summer vacations in New Suffolk around the turn of the 20th Century.  In the 1940s, my grandparents discovered Orient and one thing followed another. The people who owned the home where my grandparents and father would stay, moved into the basement during the summer months and rented the upstairs.  It's a beautiful old home at the southern end of Village Lane. 

My father's occupation kept my family travelling quite a bit, so my first full summer in Orient wasn't until 1976 when he retired.  Before that, I recall striped bass fishing in the autumn months in Plum Gut in about 1969.  We were living in North Jersey and built a summer home on Willow Terrace in 1979.  Orient had (and still has) a small, tight-knit population and I was fortunate to become friends with three of the local boys.  I was the "summer kid" but that didn't seem to bother them.  Jon taught me to ride dirt bikes and appreciate The Marshall Tucker Band, Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Outlaws.  Clifford had his own boat, a 13-foot Boston Whaler.  He was my ski instructor and older sister's boyfriend.  Cliff's older brother would play Emerson, Lake and Palmer and some strange cat I had never heard of named Frank Zappa.  I remember it like yesterday.  

Q: When did you become a full-time North Fork resident? 

A: I moved to Orient in 1981, two days after high school graduation. Orient is more a state of mind than a mark on a map.  People are everything in life. The Oysterponds community has taught me about being there for someone, caring for the pristine fields and appreciating nature.  I have walked every inch of Hallocks Bay and know what is beneath the water.  Don't take our small town for what you see, put a mask on and stick your head under the waves, that's the real Orient. 

Q: What keeps you here? 

 A: What doesn't? I could talk about town history all day, speak to an "old-timer" and just listen, walk through a corn field on a crisp October morning, or admire the rock carvings on the Sound Beach and picture E.A. Brooks chipping away back in 1932.  On a perfect day I would clam in the morning, take a boat ride through Orient Harbor for lunch and ride a dirt bike through tomato fields for a snack.  Walk down to the ice cream store after dinner and then listen to a jazz band at the Old School House by Poquatuck Park.            

Billy Hands attributes his success to the talented people around him. His most recent chap book “Marry a Girl with Money” features original art work by Alan Bull. Billy's work has appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies, including the 2007 and 2008 “Long Island Sounds.”  His upcoming book “Wasn’t That Fun,” features the recently published pieces “Carriage Drivers” and “This Could Have Been A Love Poem.”